Raphael/Parish

Legend of the Pantera

To most people the Pantera, a mystical race of puma shifters who live in the depths of the Louisiana swamps, have become little more than a legend.

It was rumored that in the ancient past twin sisters, born of magic, had created a sacred land and claimed it as their own. From that land came creatures who were neither human or animal, but a mixture of the two.

They became faster and stronger than normal humans. Their senses were hyper-acute. And when surrounded by the magic of the Wildlands they were capable of shifting into pumas.

It was also whispered that they possessed other gifts. Telepathy, witchcraft, immortality and the ability to produce a musk that could enthrall mere mortals.

Mothers warned young girls never to roam alone near the swamps, convinced that they would be snatched by the Pantera, while young men were trained to avoid hunting anywhere near the protected Wildlands.

Not that the warnings were always successful.

What girl didn’t dream of being seduced by a gorgeous, mysterious stranger? And what young man didn’t want to try his skill against the most lethal predators?

As the years passed, however, the sightings of the Pantera became so rare that the rumors faded to myths.

Most believed the species had become extinct.

Sadly, they weren’t entirely mistaken…

CHAPTER 1

SLUT. Whore.

Worthless piece of white trash.

The words were still ringing in Ashe Pascal’s ears as the door to the trailer slammed behind her.

She grimaced as she gathered her clothes that littered the front porch and headed for her piece-of-shit clunker that was parked near the curb.

For once the drunken insults flung by her mother managed to hit a nerve.

Not that she was a whore. It wasn’t like she’d gotten paid for spreading her legs, was it?

Hell no, she’d spread them for free.

Or at least she assumed she had.

How else could she be pregnant? Immaculate conceptions might happen in the good book, but in the bayous of southern Louisiana women got knocked-up the good old-fashioned way.

A damned shame she couldn’t remember what happened.

If she had to pay the piper she should at least have enjoyed the dance.

With a shake of her head, she yanked open the door of her car and tossed her clothes on the cracked leather seat before climbing behind the driver’s wheel.

Shoving her key into the ignition, she breathed out a sigh of relief as the engine rattled to weary life. The way her pissy luck was running she’d expected the battery to be dead. Again.

She supposed there was an irony in the fact that she’d promised herself that she would start looking for a new car just as soon as she’d paid off her mother’s latest bar tab. She’d even driven to the bar to tell the owner that she was done being her mother’s personal banker.

And that’s when the trouble had started.

Barely aware that she’d shoved her car in gear, Ashe absently drove through the small town that hovered on the edge of the bayou, pulling to a halt across the street from the only bar in town.

The two story wooden building with a tin roof had at one time been painted a cheery yellow, but over the years it’d faded to a miserable mustard, with heavy green shutters that could offer protection during hurricane season. The entire structure was built on heavy stilts to keep the main floor off the ground. A necessary precaution in this area. The danger of flooding was a hundred percent, which no doubt explained why less than a few hundred people lived in the town.

She gave a humorless laugh at the neon sign that blinked in the thickening gloom.

‘The Cougar’s Den’

It sounded like a hang-out for the local football team, or maybe a taxidermist’s shop.

Instead it was filled with a motley crew who she assumed came in from the oil fields, the shrimp boats and the dark shadows of the swamps. And of course, locals like her mother who were so desperate for a drink they were willing to ignore the thick air of aggression that filled the entire building.

The rest of the town avoided the place like the plague.

Including the pack of stray dogs that terrorized the rest of the town.

The Cougar’s Den was a cesspit of danger.

Her grim thoughts were abruptly interrupted as the humid spring breeze swept through her open window, tugging at her long, black curls and caressing her skin that remained a pale ivory no matter how much sun she got. Her eyes, as dark as a midnight sky, narrowed.

There was something in the breeze.

Something beyond the hint of azaleas, and newly bloomed roses from Old Lady La Vaux’s garden, and even the more distant smell of rotting vegetation that wafted from the swamps.

What the hell was that scent?

Not cologne, but…musk.

Yes. That’s what it was. A rich, intoxicating male musk.

Without warning, a flash of memory seared through her brain.

She was in the cramped barroom, trying to ignore the flat, unfriendly glares from the large group of men who were gathered around the pool tables at the back of the darkly paneled room.

One in particular had separated himself from the pack, staring at her as if she were a creature from another planet.

He was big. Six foot two at least. And powerful, with sleek, chiseled muscles beneath his tight white tee and black jeans.

In the dim light he looked like some exotic god.

His shoulder-length hair was thick and shimmered like molten gold in the dim light. His features were lean, stunningly beautiful. And his eyes…

Words couldn’t capture their beauty.

They were the same gold as his hair, but flecked with hints of jade and in the darkness they glowed with an inner light.

Abruptly her memory took a leap forward.

She was no longer in the public room, but lying on a bed in a room upstairs.

It was dark and that aromatic male musk saturated the air.

A low, male voice whispered in her ear.

“You’re so wet, ma chère. Do you want me to lick your cream?”

She groaned, her legs parting as she felt soft kisses blaze a trail down her quivering belly.

“Raphael, please.”

“Tell me what you want.” A command. “Say the words.”

“You.” She clutched the soft quilt beneath her, her body on fire with need. It’d never been this way. Not this raw, frantic hunger that clawed through her with an addictive force. “I want you.”

There was a low chuckle and she gasped at the feel of his hot breath against the sensitive skin of her inner thigh.

“Where do you want me?” he teased. “Here?” The stroke of a rough tongue through her wet slit.

Sucking a sharp breath, Ashe shattered the strange vision.

Was the memory real? Or just her mind trying to sugarcoat the hideous truth?

With a low cry, she shoved the car back into gear and stomped her foot down on the accelerator.

There were no answers here.

What she needed was a hot meal and somewhere to sleep for the night.

Tomorrow she would worry about how she was going to take care of a baby when she could barely take care of herself.

Standing in the shadows beneath the bar, Raphael strained against the large man who kept him from charging after the sorry excuse for a car currently speeding away.

“Release me,” he growled, his eyes glowing with a luminous gold in the darkness.

“Goddammit, Raphael.” Bayon shared Rafael’s golden good looks although his hair was a shade paler and his eyes held more green. He was also built on bulkier lines. “Leash your damned animal and listen to me.”

Raphael battled through the primal instincts that had nothing to do with humanity and everything to do with raw, animal desire.

Holy hell.

Of all the Pantera, he was the one who’d had the best control over his primitive nature.

It was the reason he’d been chosen by the elders to become one of the most trusted diplomats for his people, traveling away from the Wildlands to meet in secret with various world leaders. At least that was his public persona. In truth, his primary duty was heading up his peoples’ vast network of spies who infiltrated the various governments and scientific communities.

He could travel for weeks away from the reservation without being debilitated by his need to shift. And more importantly, he’d developed the ability to mimic the humans so he could function in their world.

He was still a feral feline at heart, but a feline with manners.

Now, however, he was at the mercy of savage need that thundered through his body with the force of a tsunami.

“I’m not going to tell you again,” he growled. “Let me go.”

Bayon leaned in until they were nose to nose. The bastard was one of the few who had the cojones to get in Raphael’s grill.

“This has to be a trick,” the younger warrior snapped. “We’ve tried for the past fifty years to discover human women who can carry our seed—”

“You don’t have to remind me of our history.”

And he didn’t. Raphael knew better than anyone the struggles of the Pantera.

It’d started slow.

Fewer and fewer females going into heat. And those who did were unable to carry their babes to full-term.

At first the elders believed that it was the fault of the human contact with the Pantera. They shut off their borders and became increasingly isolated from the world.

When that didn’t work, they began to fear it was a genetic anomaly. The Pantera had, after all, interbred for centuries.

So discreetly selecting the finest specimens of human females who agreed to become surrogates at an enormous price for their secrecy, they’d brought the women to their high-tech medical facilities. They were the rare few who realized the Pantera were more than mere myths.

The human females, however, had been unable to breed with the Pantera. Not even with the most potent fertility drugs.

So his people had no choice but to seek answers outside the Wildlands.

Keeping a low profile, a handful of Pantera scientists had covertly gained employment at various research facilities, seeking information from the humans’ work on DNA.

At the same time, the ‘Suits,’ or Political Faction of the Pantera, had sent spies to infiltrate the various governments.

They needed to know if there was some physical change that was affecting the magic of their land.

Toxic waste. Global warming. Bio-chemical warfare.

It could be accidental or deliberate sabotage, but if the humans were involved then Raphael intended to uncover the truth.

He had just been returning from his latest trip abroad when he’d stopped at The Cougar’s Den, needing to blow off some steam before traveling to the Wildlands and making his latest report.

The elders weren’t going to be pleased with his lack of progress.

Hell, he wasn’t pleased.

The last thing he expected was to be blindsided by a human female. Or to find himself returning to the decrepit bar week after week in the hopes of spotting her again.

And now…shit.

Giving Raphael a shake, Bayon glared at him, his anger causing the temperature to spike.

“Then you realize it’s impossible for that female to be pregnant with your child.”

Raphael met his friend glare for glare. “Impossible or not, I know what I smelled.”

“Think about it.” Bayon’s eyes glowed with golden power. “A strange woman just happens to stroll into a bar where the Pantera gather. She magically stirs your mating urges despite being human, and now she deliberately parks her car close enough that you were bound to pick up her scent before driving away like a madwoman.” He gave Raphael another shake. “Does she have to have T R A P tattooed on her ass for you to get it?”

Raphael made a sound of frustration. His friend wasn’t saying anything that Raphael hadn’t already told himself.

Hell, he’d be shocked if it wasn’t some sort of trick.

But until he discovered exactly what was happening, he wasn’t going to let the female out of his sight.

Or out of his bed, a treacherous voice whispered in the back of his mind.

“There’s one way to find out.”

With a strength that caught Bayon off-guard, Raphael shoved them away and headed toward the road.

“Wait,” Bayon called. “What are you going to do?”

“To find my woman and discover exactly what she has tattooed on her ass,” he snarled.

“Christ, Raphael.”

Focused on the rapidly fading scent, Raphael jogged away from the bar, his dark jeans and black tee allowing him to disappear among the shadows.

He expected the female to head to her house. The more respectable citizens of the small town tended to be tucked safely behind closed doors as soon as the sun went down. They might not logically believe in voodoo or ghosts or even the Pantera, but they were smart enough to know that strange creatures crawled out of the swamps at night.

No reason to become easy prey.

But instead of heading toward the wooden houses that ran in tidy rows facing the red brick schoolhouse and attached community center that doubled as a church, she turned in the opposite direction toward the town square that was framed by a handful of small shops.

At last she parked her car next to the three-story hotel that was squashed between the beauty shop and post office. Raphael stood beneath the draping branches of the weeping willow in the center of the square, watching the slender female enter through the glass door.

Did she work at the hotel?

Or was she there to meet someone?

Some man?

A low snarl rumbled through his chest, his cat twisting beneath his skin with a primeval fury.

The woman was his.

Branded by his passion and bound to him by the babe she carried in her womb.

Mine. Mine. Mine.

The words whispered through his soul as he strolled across the street to enter the cramped lobby of the hotel.

His nose wrinkled at the stench that clung to the ugly green and yellow diamond-patterned carpet and the mold that had multiplied into a thriving community behind the warped wood paneling. There was a wilted fake plant shoved in a corner and a reception desk at the back of the room. Currently a bleached-blonde woman was leaning on the desk as she flipped through a glossy magazine.

Lifting her head at his entrance, she gave a low whistle, her chubby face flushing with pleasure as her blue gaze made a slow, thorough survey of his body.

“Can I help you?” she murmured, tugging at her loose top to better display her massive rack.

Clearly the middle-aged woman thought her breasts worthy of putting on public display.

A delusional belief, but Raphael wasn’t a trained diplomat just because he could travel away from the Wildlands.

With his most charming smile he strolled forward, halting near the desk so he could covertly take note of an office to the left where two small dogs were yapping at his arrival and, to the right, a back door that led to the alleyway.

“I was passing and I thought I saw a friend come in here.”

The female gave her blouse another tug. “Lucky friend.”

“Maybe you would recognize her. She’s tall, dark-haired…beautiful.”

“Oh, you mean Ashe Pascal.”

Ashe. He silently tested the name. A Native American name.

Did she carry their blood?

“Yes.”

The woman eyed him with a growing curiosity. “She just went to her room. Do you want me to give her a call?”

“That’s not necessary.” He shared another dazzling smile. “Is she a guest here?”

“For tonight.” The bleach-blonde curls bounced as the female shook her head in a gesture of disgust. “That mother of hers kicked her out. The damned bitch should be flogged for the way she treats her daughter.”

Raphael’s brows lowered. “Ashe never speaks of her family.”

The woman shrugged. “What’s to say? Her worthless father walked out when she was just a babe and her mother’s a drunk. Ashe spends every penny trying to keep a roof over her head and the bills paid. Not that Dixie Pascal appreciates what Ashe does for her. Most nights she’s down at that nasty Cougar’s Den swilling cheap vodka.” She grimaced. “Just as a warning, if you’re new in town, you’ll wanna give that bar a miss. It’s not a place for decent folk.”

A pure shaft of fury pierced his heart.

The Pantera were a close-knit society who protected their young with a ferocious intensity.

But Ashe had been treated like trash. Tossed onto the streets by her mother.

She’d been left vulnerable, her child…his child…put at risk in this shabby hotel that was barely a step above sleeping in the gutter.

The knowledge was unacceptable.

Sensing the hotel manager’s growing curiosity, Raphael leashed his anger.

He would deal with Ashe’s worthless parents after he had her safely hidden in his lair.

For now he had to make certain that his savage obsession with the beautiful female wasn’t blinding him to an obvious trap.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he murmured.

The older woman tilted her head. “Are you wanting to see Ashe?”

With every fiber of his being.

He forced himself to shake his head.

“Perhaps later. Unfortunately, I have a meeting, but I can’t remember the exact address.” He held the manager’s pale gaze allowing a tendril of his musk to fill the air. It wasn’t enough to captivate the woman, but it would loosen her tongue. “I don’t suppose you’ve seen any strangers hanging around here?”

“Here?” She frowned, considering the question. “I’ve had the usual crew from the oil rigs and the Jenkins family came in from Baton Rouge for a reunion.”

“There hasn’t been anyone around town asking questions?” he pressed.

“The only strangers in town are down at The Cougar’s Den.” The woman heaved an exasperated frown as the dogs caught the whiff of his musk and went into a whining frenzy. “What the hell is wrong with them dogs? Excusez-moi.”

Raphael waited until the woman had stomped into the office to pacify her terrified animals before silently sliding out the back door.

He stepped into the shadows, disappearing from prying eyes as he allowed his senses to absorb his surroundings.

He caught the sound of mice tunneling through the trash cans. The buzz of the street lights at the end of the alley. The breeze that carried a threat of rain.

And, overwhelming everything, the sweet perfume that had haunted his dreams for the past six weeks.

Sucking in a deep breath, Raphael focused on the window where he could sense Ashe.

He would wait to slip into her room once she was asleep.

And then…

Then he would have the truth.

CHAPTER 2

ASHE hadn’t expected to sleep.

Even when she’d stripped off her clothes and crawled beneath the sheets buck-naked, she’d assumed she was too worried to actually relax enough to rest.

But the emotional upheaval of the day, combined with the hormonal changes that were already affecting her body, soon had her tumbling into a welcomed darkness.

Not that her rest was peaceful.

She’d barely fallen asleep when her dreams were filled with the memories of a hard, hot body pressing her into the mattress.

She moaned, her head twisting on the pillow as seeking lips trailed a line of kisses down the column of her neck. Her hands ran a restless path over the wide back, savoring the feel of rippling muscles beneath the silken skin.

Raphael.

Her legs parted as he settled between them, the steel-hard length of his erection pressing against her inner thigh. Her entire body was on fire, shaking with the need to feel him deep inside her.

It’d never been like this.

Never before had she experienced this savage…hunger.

She felt the head of his cock penetrate her, but while her hands moved to clasp his hard ass, he refused to deepen the thrust. Instead his lips blazed a path of devastation along the line of her collarbone, kissing and sucking the sensitive skin.

Her hips lifted in a silent plea, her breath wrenched from her lungs as his mouth traveled over the soft globe of her breast and latched onto her nipple.

She whimpered.

Oh…god.

It was good. So good.

His teeth closed over the aching tip, biting hard enough to send a jolt of sizzling excitement through her.

Please.

What do you want?

You.

Only me. Do you understand? You’re mine.

Yes.

Say it.

Only you.

She heard a rumble of satisfaction deep in his chest, the intoxicating musk filling her senses. Oh, hell. How had she ever thought sex an overrated pastime?

This was mind-blowingly fantastic.

The inane thought was shattered as he pressed his hips forward, entering her with a slow, ruthless slide that stretched her with a delicious friction.

He was huge.

A gasp of pleasure was ripped from her lips as his hands gripped her hips, tilting her so he could sink even deeper, invading her with the promise of paradise.

Raphael.

I’m here.

Jerked out of her dream, Ashe lifted a hand to her ear, feeling the lingering warmth. As if lips had just brushed the delicate shell.

Shit.

Slowly sitting up, she tugged the sheet over her breasts as she impatiently brushed her tangled hair out of her face.

“Hello?” Her eyes searched the darkness, sensing a presence even though she couldn’t see the intruder. A chill inched down her spine. “I know there’s someone here.”

“You smell so sweet.” The male voice was low, whiskey-smooth. And terrifyingly familiar. “Like night-blooming jasmine.”

She didn’t scream. Instinctively she knew that he would pounce before she could be heard.

Her hand fumbled for her cell phone.

Where the hell was it? She’d left it on the nightstand, hadn’t she?

“I have a gun,” she tried to bluff.

She heard a soft footfall, but the intruder remained in the shadows while she was bathed in the moonlight that slanted through the window.

The open window.

No need to ask how he managed to get in.

“That’s what first caught my attention,” he continued, ignoring her threat. “That scent…” She heard him suck in a deep breath. “It intoxicates me.”

“I’ll shoot,” she tried again, even knowing it was futile. “I swear I will.”

“And then I caught sight of you.” His words seemed to brush over her skin, creating tiny sparks of awareness. “The exquisite lines of your profile. The sexy tumble of ebony curls. The ivory satin of your skin. The elegant lines of your body.” There was a low rumble. Did it come from the man? “You were a purebred, all pride and nervous energy.”

Her mouth went dry and she forgot her search for her missing phone. Instead her fingers went toward the lamp.

“Who are you?”

“No, don’t turn on the light.”

She shivered at the command in his voice. “Then answer the question.”

“Raphael.”

So, she hadn’t imagined knowing his name.

Christ. Did that mean the rest was true as well?

The thought should terrify her. Or at least infuriate her.

It sure the hell shouldn’t cause a treacherous heat to bloom between her legs.

“Just Raphael?” she rasped.

“Just Raphael.”

“Why are you in my room?”

There was a beat of silence, as if he was startled by the question.

“You know why.”

A sudden premonition stole her breath. “No.”

“You carry my child.”

“Shit.”

The panic that should have hit the minute she woke with a strange man in her hotel room belatedly thundered through Ashe. Without conscious thought she was shoving aside the sheet and preparing to leap off the bed.

She didn’t know where she intended to go.

She was naked, broke and currently homeless.

But anywhere had to be better than locked in a room with a lunatic.

There was no warning.

One minute she was struggling to untangle her feet from the covers and the next she was flat on her back, a heavy body pressing her into the mattress.

Oh…hell.

This was it.

Her dream.

Except in her dreams he was naked. Now his denims scraped against her upper thighs and a soft tee brushed the aching tips of her breasts.

Unbelievably the sensations were almost as erotic as the feel of his bare skin.

Or maybe not so unbelievably.

Even with a layer of clothing between them she could feel the searing heat of his body seeping into her, stirring her blood. And that musk…

How was a woman supposed to think clearly?

Her lips parted—whether to scream or moan she would never know—as his head swooped down and her mouth was taken in a savage kiss.

She gasped, shocked by the jolts of sheer pleasure that ravaged her body.

It was like being struck by lightning.

Dazzling. Electric. Stunning her with an instant need that made her pussy clench with anticipation.

She squirmed beneath him, pressing the aching tips of her breasts against the heat of his chest. Oh god. It felt so good.

With a groan, Raphael ripped his mouth from hers to bury his face in the curve of her throat.

“That smell,” he muttered, his nose lingered against her thundering pulse as his hands pinned her arms over her head.

His heavy legs held the bottom half of her body motionless, but even with her mind clouded by lust she realized that he was taking great care not to press any weight against her stomach.

The knowledge sent an odd flare of tenderness through her. A sensation that was far more disturbing than the desire pulsing through her blood.

Instinctively, she tried to put some distance between them.

“No.” A warning growl rumbled deep in his chest as he lifted his head. “Don’t move.”

Her hair rose at the prickles of heat that filled the air. “Are you going to hurt me?”

“No. But your struggles…” His golden eyes suddenly seemed to shimmer with a luminosity in the darkness. “Excite my animal.”

Those eyes.

Those magnificent golden eyes that had glowed with hunger as he’d ridden her with a rough urgency.

“Oh god, it was you,” she breathed.

“Yes.”

A surge of anger merged with her lust, forming a combustible combination.

“You’re right, you are an animal,” she snapped. “What kind of man drugs and rapes a helpless woman?”

He hissed in genuine outrage. “There were no drugs and there sure as hell was no rape.” He lowered his head until they were nose to nose, his breath a warm caress against her face. “You begged, ma chère.”

“A lie,” she muttered.

He brushed his lips over her cheek until he could whisper directly in her ear, his tone pitched high as he mimicked her words.

“Please don’t stop,” he breathed. “Please, please. I need your cock deep inside me.”

Her lips parted, but the protest died as she could hear the words in her own voice echoing through a dark room.

She had begged.

She’d even grabbed the steel-hard length of his cock to try and steer him to her sweet spot.

“It was the drugs,” she muttered.

He nipped her earlobe. “No drugs.”

A violent shudder racked her body, her legs spreading as he settled between them, the ridge of his erection pressing against her inner thigh.

“There had to be,” she insisted. “I don’t have sex with strangers. And even if I did I wouldn’t forget—”

Her words faltered as he did something with his hips that aligned his cock directly against her throbbing clit.

“Mind-shattering climaxes that left us both gasping for air?”

Her breath was wrenched from her lungs even as she dug her nails into the hands that gripped her wrists above her head.

“Stop it,” she moaned, wanting nothing more than to wrap her legs around his waist and rub herself to climax. This wasn’t her. She didn’t become hot and bothered just because some guy wanted to have sex with her. Even if he was a gorgeous stud who was built like a freaking Greek god. “You did something to me.”

“No, we did something to each other.” He caught her bottom lip between his teeth, giving it a sensual tug before nibbling at the corner of her mouth. “Something that shouldn’t be possible.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“And that’s the problem.”

Hell, there were a whole lot of problems.

And this man making her go up in flames was the cause of all of them.

“Could you please get off me?” she demanded, lifting her hips as if she could actually buck him off.

His hands tightened on her wrists, his breath hissing between his clenched teeth.

“Stay. Still.”

Her heart halted as something seemed to shift behind his glowing eyes. An…awareness that was watching her with a feral hunger.

“Christ.”

He sucked in a deep breath, a muscle clenching in his jaw. “Listen, ma chère, we need to talk. But if you keep moving, I’m going to forget everything except my instinct to fuck you.”

Moisture gathered between her legs, a raw craving clawing through her.

“Don’t…don’t say things like that.”

“Does it excite you?”

Yes. God, yes.

She wanted to be fucked.

Here. Now.

She swallowed a moan.

“It disgusts me,” she forced herself to lie. “You disgust me.”

His low chuckle brushed over her heated face. “Is that why you’re wet?” he teased. “Why you’ve got your nails dug into my hands as if you’re terrified I might leave before I satisfy that ache inside you?”

She shuddered. He was right.

It would be unbearable to be left to suffer the overwhelming lust that was spiking ever higher.

“God.”

“Shh.” He brushed a gentle kiss over her lips. “Right now I just want to talk.”

She refused to be comforted. “Before or after you drug me?”

“Dammit.” The austere beauty of his face tightened with annoyance. Then, with an obvious effort, he struggled to keep his temper. “Have you heard of the Pantera?”

She blinked.

Of all the questions she’d been expecting, that had to be at the bottom of the list.

“The beast-men who roam the swamps?” she asked in confusion.

His lips twisted. “I suppose that’s one way of describing them. What do you know?”

She shrugged. Like every child who grew up near the swamps she’d heard the stories of the strange beasts who were part man, part animal, who roamed the darkness.

Her own grandmother had sworn the mysterious race had openly interacted with the townsfolk when she’d been young, but the old woman had often been confused. Hell, she’d all but implied that Ashe’s father had been some sort of magical shaman instead of a lazy jackass who’d bolted the minute he discovered her mother was pregnant.

“I know they’re about as real as Rougarou and Bigfoot,” she said.

“They’re real.” There was a deliberate pause. “I’m real.”

Her mouth went dry, a sharp-edged fear slicing through her heart.

“You’re saying you’re a beast-man?”

The beautiful face was set in a grim expression. “I’m Pantera.”

She tried to laugh, only to have it come out as a shaky moan. “Yeah, right.”

“Look at me, Ashe.” The eyes glowed brighter, as if there were a fire burning deep inside them with flecks of jade. They were…magnificent. Stunning. But they sure as hell weren’t human. “You know I speak the truth. You’ve sensed I was different from the moment we met.”

Of course she’d sensed he was different.

No mere man could move with such graceful speed, or hold a woman captive with one hand.

And then there was that enticing musk that clouded her mind and made it impossible to think.

“I didn’t know you were a freaking animal,” she rasped.

He flinched, his nose flaring with irritation. “Careful, ma chère, the child you carry is Pantera.”

Abruptly she squeezed her eyes shut. It was too much.

Too. Damned. Much.

“God, please let this be a nightmare.”

“Do you intend to act like you’re five and hope you can close your eyes and wish away the monster?” he chastised. “Or are you going to look at me and discuss this like an adult?”

Her eyes snapped open.

Did he think a child of a raging drunk had ever been allowed to pretend she could wish away monsters?

“I was an adult at five,” she said, coldly.

Something that might have been regret softened his aquiline features.

“Then you understand that we have to face the consequences of our actions.”

“Easy for you to say. I don’t even remember our…actions.” She narrowed her gaze. “You did something to me to make me forget, didn’t you? Is it a power you have?”

He shrugged. “One of many.”

So she hadn’t blacked out that night.

She didn’t know if his confession made her feel better or not.

Actually, she didn’t know what she felt.

She licked her lips, shivering as his glowing gaze lowered to study her mouth with an unsettling intensity.

“Are you—”

“What?”

“Part beast?”

CHAPTER 3

RAPHAEL lifted a brow.

Christ. Did she actually think he had furry parts when he was in this form?

Then he bleakly reminded himself that while every kiss, every soft moan as he plunged deep inside her, was branded on his mind, she had only flashes of memory.

The thought stirred a startling compulsion to repeat the performance.

To fuck her so long and so thoroughly she would never, ever be able to forget his touch.

To mark her so no other man would ever dare lay a finger on her.

Mine.

He swallowed a low snarl. Dammit. He’d been chosen as a diplomat because he was one of the Pantera capable of controlling his emotions.

How did this female manage to destroy that restraint?

“Yes, I’m part beast,” he said dryly. “And before you try to peek, I don’t have animal parts when I’m in human form.”

With a remarkable courage, considering all she’d been through over the past few hours, she met his gaze, determined to learn the truth.

“I assume that means you have more than one form?”

“When I’m on my native soil I can shift.”

“Shift?” She blinked. “Like a werewolf?”

He made a sound of disgust. “No, I’m a puma, not a mangy dog.”

She slowly absorbed his words, her face pale. “How?”

Raphael hesitated, battling against his instinctive urge to ignore her question.

Over the past fifty years the already elusive Pantera had become increasingly isolated, sensing they were in danger but unable to pinpoint the precise threat.

Only those individuals necessary for survival of their race actually left the Wildlands and they remained incognito except to a rare few, trusted humans. Well, and the politicians who had the power to screw with their homeland.

But even as he struggled against his training, he knew deep in his gut that this woman was innocent.

He would have been able to sense if she were lying to him.

She truly had no idea what Pantera were or that the child she carried was supposed to be an impossible dream.

“You’ll have to discuss the subject with our philosophers if you want an exhaustive explanation,” he at last answered. “But the short story is that the Wildlands possess a magic that created my distant ancestors.”

She frowned. “Turning them into pumas?”

“Giving them the ability to shift into animal form. It’s still hotly debated whether they could have chosen any animal and settled on pumas since they were the most lethal predator capable of surviving in the bayous, or if it was the only form the magic allowed.”

Her face paled another shade, emphasizing her fragile beauty. “What else can you do?”

Feeling a jab of regret, Raphael loosened his grip on her wrists, skimming his hands down her bare arms.

This had to be difficult for her.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know how to make it any easier.

“Like humans, we each have our own talents.”

She shivered with growing excitement, but her expression remained hard with suspicion.

“That’s…evasive.”

His concentration was shattered by the feel of her satin skin beneath his fingertips, the cat inside him stirring with restless hunger.

It didn’t understand this need to talk.

It wanted to pounce. Devour. To mate with this female who was warm and wet beneath him.

“We’re a secretive race.”

“No shit,” she breathed. “Why?”

“We have our reasons.”

Her eyes darkened as his hands traced her shoulders before heading down the line of her collarbone, her own concentration obviously beginning to fracture.

“Just tell me, is one of your talents seducing humans?” she hissed through clenched teeth.

“We produce a pheromone that can be an aphrodisiac,” he said, not surprised when her eyes widened and she wildly grasped for the excuse to explain her violent arousal whenever he touched her.

“I knew it,” she rasped.

He shook his head. “Ashe, that’s not what happened between us.”

“You just said—”

“I said it’s possible to produce a pheromone, but believe me I had no need to do anything,” he said, his voice thickening as his dick began to throb with an insistent craving. “You walked into the bar and the air combusted between us.”

He could hear her heart miss a beat as her nipples hardened into tiny nubs of temptation.

“So you’re saying I caught sight of you and instantly climbed into the nearest bed?”

She tried for scorn, but there was no missing the dilation of her pupils and the scent of her arousal.

He sucked in a deep breath, savoring her sweet scent. “I don’t have an explanation beyond the fact that we saw one another, the mating heat hit, and not a force on this earth could have kept me from claiming you.”

“Mating heat?”

“When a female Pantera is fertile she—”

“Don’t.” She pressed a hand over his mouth, a complex tangle of emotions rippling over her delicate features. “I’m not Pantera.”

“No,” he swiftly agreed. “And even if you were, I should have been able to control myself. I might have the soul of an animal, but I’m still human.”

She studied his somber expression, searching for the truth. “Did you truly make me forget?”

Raphael forced himself to meet her gaze. He wasn’t proud that he’d used his power to scrub her mind.

But the bald truth was that he’d been as shocked as she was by the intensity of his desire for her. And while he’d had sex with any number of human females, he’d never lost control like he had that night.

He couldn’t be entirely certain that he hadn’t given away the fact he wasn’t a normal lover.

Now he knew that his little stunt was only going to complicate their already fucked-up relationship.

“I have the ability to cloud your memories,” he reluctantly admitted.

She stiffened beneath him. “You can manipulate my mind?”

“No,” he growled. “I can only…urge you not to remember. It’s a small trick that has allowed my people to keep our presence hidden from most of the world.”

He could feel her stiffen beneath him. “That’s what you call it? A small trick?” she snapped, her eyes flashing with midnight fire. “I thought I was going crazy when I went to the doctor and he told me I was pregnant. Then I started getting flashes of memories. It terrified me. I didn’t know if they were real or if they were fragments of a growing insanity.”

“I’m sorry,” he said.

And he was. The thought of causing this woman one second of pain was abhorrent. But as he slowly began to accept that the child she carried was no trick, that she was actually pregnant with his babe, he couldn’t regret that he’d given into his primitive urges.

To have this woman as his mate, and a child to call his own…

It filled him with a fierce happiness he never expected.

Her lips flattened. “That’s all you have to say? I’m sorry?”

His gaze lingered on her mouth, his cock twitching as his cat reached the end of its patience.

“It shouldn’t have been possible.”

“The memories?”

“The memories or the pregnancy.”

“You used protection?”

“No.” His gaze returned to meet the challenge in her eyes, once again struck by her courage. Most humans, male or female, would be cowering in fear. But not his beautiful Ashe. His cat preened with pride. “I’m incapable of catching or carrying human diseases so you were in no danger. And there’s never been a human female impregnated by a Pantera.”

“Never?”

“Not one in recent memory.”

Her eyes widened. “Then maybe this baby isn’t yours.”

“Ashe—”

“You said yourself you screwed with my memories. Maybe I left you and had sex with some other man…” She gave a small scream as his teeth sank into her neck. Not hard enough to break the skin, but with enough force to claim his ownership. “Shit, Raphael,” she gasped, her nails digging into his shoulders as she squirmed beneath him.

Not in pain.

But pure excitement.

“No other man has touched you,” he snarled, his nose pressed against her skin as he breathed deep of her scent, seeking to calm his animal.

She shivered, her head pressing into the pillow to arch her neck in unconscious invitation.

“How can you be so certain?”

“Because you’re mine.” He soothed his bite mark with tender kisses before heading downward. “You even taste like you’re mine,” he murmured, trailing his tongue down to the tip of her nipple.

Ashe moaned, her fingers shoving into his hair. “What does that mean?” she demanded.

“You taste of sunshine,” he whispered, his tongue continuing to tease the hard nub, “and rich, fertile earth, and magic. You taste of home.”

Her eyes squeezed shut, a flush staining her cheeks. “What are you doing to me?”

“Nothing you don’t want, ma chère,” he promised, his lips tracing a gentle path of kisses to her stomach. “Mine,” he murmured, his superior senses already able to detect the tiny babe in her womb.

Whispering a soft hello, he shoved himself off the bed, ridding himself of his clothes with a minimum of fuss, relishing the sensation of her avid gaze taking in the hard muscles of his naked body and the tattoo on his upper chest. He paused, taking a heartbeat to simply appreciate the sight of Ashe stretched across the mattress, her slender body painted in silver moonlight and her dark hair spilled across the sheet.

Like an exquisite sacrifice to the gods.

Then, placing a knee on the edge of the bed, he bent down to kiss the sensitive arch of her foot before nibbling each tiny toe.

She gave a choked groan as he slowly explored up her calf, relishing the intoxicating smell of her arousal perfuming the air.

With a low groan she restlessly stirred on the sheets, and Raphael grasped her hips, holding her still.

He intended to feast on her, making her scream with pleasure before he was done.

Giving her a punishing nip, he worked his way upward, spreading her legs as his cat gave a low snarl of anticipation.

“Raphael.” Her fingers clenched in his hair as his tongue discovered her moist heat.

He slid his hands beneath her hips, finding the perfect angle before returning to his single-minded task.

Lapping at her cream, Raphael savored her sweetness, dipping his tongue into her tight little passage.

Holy hell. Her taste was intoxicating. Better than the finest wine.

He stroked back to the top of her clit, finding her tiny bundle of pleasure to suck between his lips.

Her hips bucked upward, her hands tugging at his hair as her moans became shortened pants.

He could taste her nearing climax on his tongue, making his cock twitch in protest.

As tempting as it might be to stroke her to completion, he needed more.

He wanted to look her in the eye as he thrust deep inside her, completing the most intimate connection possible between lovers.

With a last, lingering lap of his tongue, Raphael surged upward, claiming her mouth in a kiss of stark hunger. He would never have his fill of her.

Never.

Her legs wrapped instinctively around his waist in a silent offering and Raphael gave a rough groan. He was quivering with the need to slam his cock into her, pounding them both to a swift, satisfying climax, but he was acutely conscious that she was far more fragile than a Pantera female.

He had to be careful.

Peering deep into her dazed eyes, he pressed the head of his cock at her entrance, halting to appreciate the sensation of her moist flesh wrapped around his crown.

Oh, hell. He could come just like this, it felt so good.

Beneath him, Ashe whimpered, her nails digging into his upper arms as she struggled to tug him closer.

“Why are you stopping?” she pleaded. “I need you.”

“Easy, ma chère,” he murmured. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t…oh god…”

She lifted her hips, taking another inch of his throbbing erection inside her. They both groaned, the air spiced with the musky scent of his cat who was dangerously close to the surface.

This was a Pantera at his most primitive, stripped of the layer of civilization that gave him the appearance of being human.

He slid his hands beneath her shoulder blades, lowering his head to claim her lips even as he thrust forward and claimed her with his steel-hard erection.

With him buried to the hilt, they clutched at one another, the pleasure rolling over them in searing waves.

“You have enthralled me,” he breathed as he slowly pulled out of her to surge back with a roll of his hips. She gave a startled gasp that was choked off as the swelling excitement held them in sexual thrall. “I am yours.”

Scattering kisses over her damp face, he drove himself into her heat, keeping the pace relentless, but gentle. Man, he wanted this to last all night, but already he could feel the building pressure of his orgasm. Burying his face in the curve of her neck, his fingers flexed against her back, his nails unconsciously digging into her tender flesh.

He was lost.

Lost in the overwhelming sensation of her pussy clenched tight and hot around his surging cock.

Continuing his relentless pace, he waited for her to tense beneath him, the sound of her thundering heartbeat echoing inside him with a pagan rhythm.

Still it wasn’t until she gave a soft cry of release that he unleashed his cat, unknowingly using his claws to slice through her skin, marking her on a most primal level.

With one last thrust he buried himself until his balls were flush against her ass and allowed his climax to smash into him with mind-numbing force.

God. Damn.

Was the world still spinning? It felt as if it must have come to a shuddering, cataclysmic halt.

Raising his head, he studied Ashe’s sated expression, a smile of smug satisfaction curving his lips.

The scent of lust and his personal musk was thick in the air, along with…

Blood?

With a stunned sense of disbelief, he turned to the side, rolling her over so he could inspect the scratches that marred the satin skin of her upper back.

Marks made by claws, not human nails.

They weren’t deep, but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that they would leave four silver lines on each shoulder that would forever claim her as his mate.

No. It wasn’t possible.

A Pantera couldn’t shift unless they were in the Wildlands.

Their eyes glowed in the dark, or when their emotions were aroused, and they produced a musk that was directly connected to their cats. But they couldn’t actually change body parts.

So what the hell had just happened?

CHAPTER 4

RAPHAEL didn’t try to prevent Ashe from lying back on the mattress, a frown chasing away her earlier glow of post-coital bliss as she regarded him with a wary suspicion.

“What was that about?”

“This is madness,” he muttered.

“I agree.” Her chin tilted to a defensive angle, yanking the sheet over her body still flushed from her recent climax. “Sex with a stranger who says he’s not even human is most certainly madness. Even worse, I’m now stuck with an unwanted pregnancy.”

His stunned reaction to yet another impossibility becoming possible was shattered by her stark words.

While he’d been reeling at the sight of his mating marks, she’d been left feeling raw and exposed by their explosive passion. He should have been cuddling her close and assuring her that she was precisely where she belonged.

In his arms.

Now she was scrambling to resurrect her protective walls.

Christ, could he fuck up the situation any worse?

He leaned on his elbow, meeting her guarded gaze with an expression of open concern.

“You don’t want the baby?”

Her defiance faltered, something heartrendingly vulnerable visible in the depths of her dark eyes.

“I…haven’t had time to think about it.”

His hand moved to cautiously touch her lower stomach, struggling against the sudden, brutal fear that she might actually do something to end the pregnancy.

“Ashe, I’m not exaggerating when I say this is a miracle,” he said softly, not minding the edge of pleading in his voice. His child might very well prove to be the savior of the Pantera. “My people—”

His words came to abrupt halt as he tensed, turning his head toward the door.

“What is it?” she demanded.

“I’m not sure.”

With a fluid movement he was off the bed and pulling on his jeans and T-shirt before moving silently across the room.

He pressed his ear to the door, his heightened senses picking up the unmistakable scent of two human males walking up the steps and the metallic tang of the guns they carried.

It wasn’t the stench of their weapons, however, that made his cat snarl in warning.

There was something…off in their smell.

Not drugs or disease.

But a sour smell that was just wrong.

Without hesitation he spun on his heel and headed back across the room. He didn’t know who the hell these men were, but he wasn’t hanging around to find out.

Not when his mate and child needed his protection.

Reaching the bed, Raphael leaned down to wrap the sheet around a startled Ashe, scooping her off the mattress and cradling her against his chest as he headed toward the open window.

“What the hell are you doing?” she rasped, futilely battling against the sheet tangled around her limbs.

“We’re leaving.”

“But I’m—”

He covered her mouth with his hand, bending down to whisper directly in her ear.

“Shh. We need to get out of here. Now.”

She tensed in his arms. “You’re scaring me.”

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” The words were a vow that came from his very soul. “Hold on.”

Her eyes widened as he held her out the window, and she belatedly realized his intent.

“No,” she choked as he gave a shove with his feet and they were falling through the air.

He landed softly, keeping her tightly pressed against his chest as he allowed his senses to search the darkness.

Only when he was certain that there were no strangers lurking in the alley did he jog toward a nearby side street, heading south of town at a speed that could never be mistaken for human.

Right now he didn’t care if he exposed his superior skills or not. He needed to get Ashe somewhere safe.

Still struggling to get her arms free so she could no doubt punch him in the face, Ashe at last gave a hiss of frustration.

“Dammit, let me down.”

“Not until we’re safe.”

“Safe from what?”

He met her narrowed black eyes, knowing nothing he said was going to make her happy.

“I’m not sure.”

“You’re dragging me naked through town in the middle of the night and you’re not sure why?”

“That about sums it up.”

“Sums it up?” She kicked her feet in fury. “Take me back to the hotel.”

“Not a chance in hell.”

“I’ll scream. I—” She bit off her words as he reached the outskirts of town, jogging along the edge of the swamp before heading straight for The Cougar’s Den. “Why did you bring me here?”

He ignored her question, heading up the back stairs and slamming his fist against the steel door.

There was a tense wait as security checked him out on the monitors, then the door was finally shoved open to reveal a furious Bayon.

“What the hell are you doing?” the younger Pantera snarled, glaring at the female in Raphael’s arms.

Raphael stepped past his friend, entering the storage room of the bar.

“Make sure we weren’t followed,” he commanded.

For a moment Bayon bristled, as if he might demand an explanation. Then, muttering something about crazy cats in heat, he slipped out the door and melted into the shadows.

Tightening his hold on a still furious Ashe, Raphael crossed the storage room to kick the edge of the wooden shelves, watching the wall swing inward to reveal the secret chambers hidden behind the bar.

He halted in the communal room, where the Pantera visiting the area could gather in private.

It wasn’t fancy. Nothing more than two overstuffed sofas and a handful of padded chairs sturdy enough to endure the roughhousing that came with a race of people who were cats at heart.

It was, however, the only place they could talk in privacy.

The attached room was dedicated to high-tech security that kept watch on the fringes of the swamp, monitoring everything and everyone who entered the bayous, while the upper story was set aside for private bedrooms.

There was no way in hell he was going to take Ashe to another room that included a bed.

Not until he was convinced there was no threat.

Gingerly setting Ashe on her feet, Raphael stepped back, but not before she managed to take a swing, clipping him on the chin.

“How dare you kidnap me?” she snapped, covering her seething fear behind rage.

Rafael rubbed his chin. More to give her the satisfaction of believing she’d hurt him than in any true pain.

“I’m going to protect you and my child whether you want me to or not.”

She tugged the sheet until it was wrapped tightly over her breasts, her hair spilling over her bare ivory shoulders like a river of ebony.

“Protect me from what?”

“That’s my question,” Bayon interrupted, stepping into the room and folding his arms over his chest.

Instinctively, Raphael moved to stand protectively at Ashe’s side.

“Ashe, this is Bayon,” he said, his warning gaze never leaving Bayon’s grim expression.

“He’s a—”

She didn’t need to finish the question for Raphael to know what she was asking.

“Pantera. Yes.”

Bayon scowled. “Shit, you told her?”

Feeling Ashe shiver, Raphael wrapped an arm around her shoulder and tugged her close.

“She carries my child.”

Bayon hissed in shock as Ashe’s back was exposed, revealing the rapidly healing scratches.

“And your mark.” Bayon gave a disbelieving shake of his head. “Dammit, Raphael. What the hell is going on?”

“The question is open for debate.”

“Yeah, and until we can find out the truth, you shouldn’t have brought her here. She can’t be trusted.”

“I can’t be trusted? Is that a joke?” Ashe broke into the argument, her eyes flashing fire. “I didn’t emit some sort of lust odor to get an unsuspecting woman pregnant and then mess with her mind before kidnapping her.”

Bayon’s brows snapped together. “Why did you come here that first night?”

Ashe stiffened. “It’s none of your business.”

Bayon took a step forward. “Who sent you?”

“No one sent me.”

“Then why were you here?”

“I was paying my mother’s bar tab. She’s the town drunk,” Ashe snapped, seeming to realize that the stubborn Pantera wasn’t going to let it go. “Satisfied?”

“Not even close.”

Bayon reached out a hand and a red mist clouded Raphael’s mind. He didn’t truly believe his friend meant to harm Ashe, but it didn’t matter.

Between one beat of his heart and the next, he had Bayon pinned to the wall, his forearm pressed against the man’s throat.

“Don’t. Touch. Her,” he warned, the air prickling with the threat of violence. “She’s innocent.”

Bayon stilled, accepting that he’d pressed Raphael too far.

“You can’t be certain.”

“Yes. I can.”

“How?”

Raphael held his friend’s gaze, allowing him to see the truth in his eyes.

“Because she’s mine.”

Bayon scowled, but a hint of uncertainty flashed through leaf green eyes.

“That’s impossible.”

“We can argue about it later.” Raphael forced himself to lower his arm and step back. “For now I need your skills.”

Bayon cast a swift glance toward the tense Ashe before returning his attention to Raphael and offering a slow nod.

“For what?”

“I caught the scent of two men entering the hotel.”

Bayon blinked. “Is that the start of a bad joke?”

“They were armed.”

“Everyone in this godforsaken town carries a gun.”

Raphael shook his head. “Not enough to start World War III.”

“They could have been poachers,” Bayon pointed out with a shrug.

“They smelled…”

“What?”

“Wrong.”

Bayon held Raphael’s gaze as they both recalled the warning from Parish, the leader of the Hunter Faction, that there’d been reports of Pantera running across humans with scents that repelled their inner cats.

Parish had been certain they were attempting to spy on the Wildlands.

Now Bayon gave a sharp nod. “I’ll check them out.”

Waiting for his friend to shut the door behind his retreating form, Raphael moved to stand directly in front of Ashe.

He didn’t for a second believe her momentary silence and stoic expression were a sign of resignation. Unfortunately he had to make a call to the Wildlands to warn them to put extra guards on the borders.

“I need you to stay here,” he said, trying to console his raw nerves with the knowledge that there was no way she could escape even if she wanted to.

The locks were specifically designed to only respond to the touch of a Pantera. They wouldn’t budge for a human.

She frowned, clutching the sheet with a white-knuckled grip. “Where are you going?”

“To call…a friend.”

“And you expect me to wait here?” She glared at him with a seething fury. “Do you think a few bouts of hot sex have given me Stockholm syndrome?”

Lowering his head, he claimed her lips in a kiss of sheer frustration.

All he wanted to do was sweep her into his arms and carry her to his homeland where they could celebrate the new life they’d created.

Instead he was plagued with a growing fear that an unseen danger was lurking just out of sight.

“Just stay here and behave yourself.”

CHAPTER 5

ASHE was still reeling as Raphael left through a narrow door on the far side of the room.

Of course, she’d been reeling since the doctor had called with the shocking news of her pregnancy.

That was one of the reason’s she’d gone to the hotel instead of trying to convince her mother to let her return home.

She’d needed a few hours to consider her options in private.

But instead of a few hours of peace, she’d been accosted by the man who’d impregnated her, discovered he was a creature she’d long believed to be a myth, seduced all over again and kidnapped.

She grimaced as she lifted her fingers to lips that still tingled from his touch.

Okay. Maybe it wasn’t entirely fair to claim he’d seduced her.

She’d all but begged him to ease the desire that had been on a slow simmer for the past six weeks.

And if she were honest, she’d admit that her treacherous body was ready and eager to repeat the performance.

Which was precisely why she needed to get the hell away from the disturbing man.

No…not man.

Pantera.

Beast.

Absently she reached over her shoulder to touch the scratches that had seemed to shock Bayon. They didn’t hurt. In fact, they tingled with a pleasure that was as disturbing as the implication that Raphael had deliberately marked her.

Yeah. She was in dire need of some space to clear her head.

Crossing to where they’d first entered the room, she placed a cautious hand on the silver doorknob.

She didn’t know what she’d expected.

Ringing alarms. A trap door opening to drop her into a pit of alligators. An electric shock.

Something to prevent her from leaving the private rooms.

But stepping into the back storage area, there was nothing to break the silence beyond the thundering beat of her heart.

Still, she remained on edge as she tiptoed to the outer door. It was quite possible a silent alarm had been activated. Or that there would be guards outside that she hadn’t noticed when she’d first arrived with Raphael.

And, of course, there was the mysterious danger that Raphael insisted was stalking him.

Until she was far enough away from the bizarre creatures she would have to take extra care.

Surprised yet again when the door opened easily, Ashe crouched low as she darted down the steep staircase, and headed directly toward the cars that lined the narrow street.

She shivered, feeling a strange chill of premonition. As if unseen eyes were following her every movement.

Damn. She needed to get back to the hotel.

She was going to get dressed, get her car keys and head out of this town as fast as possible.

After that…

Well, she’d worry about that once she was far, far away.

Pausing to tuck the sheet tighter around her body, Ashe sucked in a deep breath and gathered her shaken courage.

She’d endured a childhood of neglect interspersed with episodes of terrifying violence from a mother who’d never loved her. She’d been humiliated and bullied throughout school. She’d been forced to work as a secretary for a bastard who couldn’t keep his hands to himself, just to keep a roof over her head.

She had truly discovered the meaning behind ‘what didn’t kill you only makes you stronger’.”

Now she stiffened her spine and gave one last glare toward the shabby bar that glowed in the neon lights.

“Behave myself?” she muttered. “Not in this lifetime.”

Kicking the folds of the sheet away from her bare feet, she turned to gaze at the untamed edge of the swamp across the street. She had no genuine desire to wade through the muck, not to mention risking the endless dangers that haunted the bayous. But she couldn’t walk down the streets in a sheet without attracting unwanted attention, not even in this podunk town.

She would have to skirt the swamps until she was closer to the hotel.

The decision made, she dashed across the road, grimacing as the gravel dug into the soles of her feet. God almighty. Would this night ever end?

The thought had barely formed when a strange buzzing flew past her ear. She waved an impatient hand, assuming it was one of the humongous bugs that filled the night air.

Some grew to the size of small birds.

It wasn’t until there was an audible thwack in a cypress tree just behind her that she turned her head to stare at the arrow stuck in the trunk.

She stumbled to a baffled halt.

It wasn’t that unusual for the locals to hunt with bow and arrow.

Some preferred following in the traditions of their forefathers. Some preferred the challenge of hunting old-school. And some just didn’t have the money to buy a gun.

But who would be out hunting this time of night?

And why would they be so close to town?

Stupidly, it wasn’t until the second arrow clipped the top of her shoulder as it whizzed past that she accepted that she was the prey, not some hapless rabbit.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

She hadn’t thought Raphael’s buddies would actually try to kill her.

Unless it wasn’t his friends, but his supposed enemies?

But why would they shoot at her?

Not that the who, what or where mattered at the moment.

With a muffled cry she darted toward the nearest clump of bushes, kneeling down to peer through the thick branches.

It was too dark to see more than vague outlines of shapes. She thought she could see something running along the roof of the closed lumberyard, and…was that someone creeping between those trucks?

Oh god.

For a crazed second, panic threatened to overwhelm her.

She had no phone, no clothes, no weapons that could help protect her.

Worse, she didn’t know if a scream would bring help or more danger.

Then her hand unconsciously slid to her stomach, a protective burst of determination stiffening her spine.

Dammit, she wasn’t going to wait here like a sitting duck.

She had a child to protect, which meant she had to get away.

Wrapping the bottom of the sheet around her arm so it was above her knees, she scooted backward. If she could reach the actual bayou she had a chance of shaking the bastards.

She ignored the sound of approaching footsteps, and the strange smell that made her nose curl in disgust. Her only hope of survival was slipping away before her stalker could pinpoint her precise location.

Concentrating on backing away as silently as possible, Ashe froze when a low, enraged snarl reverberated through the air.

It was the sort of full-throated roar that caused a terrified hush to spread through the area.

A feral predator on the hunt.

Barely daring to breathe, Ashe listened as she heard a muttered curse from just beyond the bush and the sound of rustling, followed by the unmistakable click of a gun. Either the person wasn’t the same psycho Robin Hood who’d been flinging arrows in her direction, or he’d decided that approaching danger was worth pulling out the big guns.

Literally.

But, even as she prepared herself for the deafening blast of the gunshot, there was another snarl and a blood-chilling scream that she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt would haunt her dreams for nights to come.

Barely realizing she was moving, Ashe straightened to peer over the top of the bush. It wasn’t so much a desire to see what was happening. Hell, no. She had a hideous suspicion it was going to be awful. But she needed to make sure the stalker was too busy fighting off the rabid animal to notice her escape.

She needn’t have worried.

The man who’d been standing by the bush wasn’t going to be firing arrows at her or anyone else.

Paralyzed, Ashe’s gaze roamed over the man who was now sprawled on the ground, his throat ripped out and his face mangled. His dead eyes stared sightlessly at the star-studded sky, his arms flung wide with a gun in one hand and his empty bow in the other.

She gagged, a hand pressed to her mouth as her stomach threatened to revolt against the grisly sight.

She’d never seen a dead man before.

Especially not one who had been mauled by a wild animal.

Then her shattered disbelief was distracted as a sleek form detached from the shadows, gliding toward her with an uncanny silence.

“No,” she breathed, taking in the sight of the large cat in stunned amazement.

The color of rich caramel, the fur was thick and glossy in the moonlight. The broad head had small rounded ears and large golden eyes that studied her with an unnerving intensity. His body was chiseled muscle with long legs and a tail that was tipped with black.

Any other time she would have found the animal a beautiful sight.

Lethal certainly, and due proper respect, but…beautiful.

This wasn’t any other time, however, and facing the deadly predator with his most recent kill mangled on the ground between them only ratcheted up her fear.

She held out her hand. Like that was going to help.

“Stay back.”

“Ashe?” She jerked at the sound of her name being called, turning to watch Bayon appear from behind the large cat. The male came to a sharp halt as the animal whirled to hiss at him in warning. “Holy shit.” His gaze focused on Ashe as she took a step toward him, giving a fierce shake of his head. “No, don’t move. He won’t hurt you.”

“How do you know?” she demanded, her voice as shaky as her nerves. “Is this your pet?”

“Pet?” A humorless smile twisted his lips. “No.”

“Then how do you know he’s not going to hurt me?”

“He’s trying to protect you.”

Her heart slammed against her chest as a disturbing suspicion began to form in the back of her mind.

“A wild animal is trying to protect me?” she tried to scoff. “Yeah right.”

Bayon held her wary gaze. “He may be wild, but he’s not entirely an animal.”

“Don’t.” She turned her attention toward the cat who had moved to stand directly between her and Bayon. It was one thing to be told of humans who could transform into pumas and another to see it in the flesh. Literally. “You can’t seriously expect me to believe that…that creature is Raphael?”

The green eyes blazed with sheer male aggravation. “It doesn’t matter what you believe.”

“But—”

“Who was that man?” he interrupted her protest.

She grimaced, reluctantly turning her gaze to the bloody corpse. “I don’t have a clue. I assumed he was a friend of yours.”

“No.” Without warning, Bayon leaned forward to spit on the dead man. “Tell me what happened.”

Yikes. So not a friend.

“I…decided to return to the hotel.”

He narrowed his gaze. “And Raphael just let you go?”

She tilted her chin. Arrogant ass.

“I didn’t have to ask for his permission.” She met him glare for glare. “Or yours.”

He went rigid, seemingly startled by her words. “You opened the doors?”

“Of course I did. I’m not helpless.”

He studied her with a disturbing intensity. “The locks are specifically designed to respond only to Pantera. They should never have opened for you.”

She frowned, recalling her own amazement that her escape had been so easy.

Was it possible…

No.

God. She was so tired she couldn’t even think straight.

“Then they must have been left unlocked,” she said, her tone warning she was a breath away from snapping.

He hesitated, as if he wanted to press her, but meeting her panicked glare, he at last gave an impatient wave of his hand.

“What happened next?”

“I was trying to get back to the hotel without everyone realizing I was waltzing through town in just a sheet when this…” She waved a hand toward the corpse. “Whack job started shooting arrows at me.” She shook her head. “I mean, who uses a bow and arrow when you have a gun?”

“Someone who wants to kill without attracting unwanted attention.”

Her breath tangled in her throat. Oh. Yeah. Good point.

She shivered, vividly aware of how close she’d come to death.

“I was trying to sneak away when I heard a roar and—” Her words trailed away as she glanced toward the puma staring at her with glowing golden eyes.

“Raphael?” Bayon helpfully supplied, his own gaze trained on the big cat.

“He attacked.”

Bayon shook his head. “Astonishing.”

“Astonishing?” She made a choked sound. “A man is dead.”

He lifted his head to stab her with a fierce glare. “A man trying to kill you. Would you rather Raphael had allowed him to finish his task?”

No. The answer came without hesitation, her hand once again pressing against her belly. To protect her child she would have done anything.

Including killing the man herself.

She shuddered, unthinkingly stepping toward Bayon. She might not trust him, but she desperately needed a hot bath, a warm bed and a return to sanity.

Instantly the puma turned, opening his mouth to display his impressively sharp teeth.

“No,” Bayon snapped. “Stay there.”

She scowled in frustration. “If it’s Raphael then why is he keeping me trapped here?”

“He’s keeping me away from you.”

“I thought you were friends?”

“We are, but his beast is convinced you’re his mate and he won’t willingly allow another male near you.”

Mate.

She pressed her fingers to her throbbing temple. “God…this can’t be happening.”

“You have no idea,” Bayon muttered.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“A Pantera can only shift when we’re in the Wildlands.”

Ashe stared at him in confusion. She was still trying wrap her brain around the whole ‘shifting’ thing.

“This town is part of the Wildlands?”

“No.”

“Then I don’t understand.”

“Neither do I.” There was a dangerous edge in his voice. “But I intend to find out.”

Keeping his gaze trained on the cat, Bayon began to whisper in an unfamiliar language, the haunting words resonating deep inside her, like a bell being struck.

Ashe bit her lip, ignoring the terrified voice in the back of her head that urged her to flee while Bayon was distracted.

Where would she go?

Certainly nowhere that she wouldn’t be constantly looking over her shoulder for fear there might be an arrow trained at her back.

Besides, she couldn’t avoid the truth any longer.

Raphael was a mythical Pantera and no amount of denial was going to change the fact.

Or the chance that the child she carried was going to be one as well.

She had to find out as much as possible about these mysterious people if she was going to keep her child safe.

Inching away from the body lying lifeless on the ground, she watched with a growing fascination as Bayon lowered himself to his knees and continued to whisper as he looked directly into the eyes of the beast.

Ashe felt a breathtaking surge of electricity dance over her skin, then her eyes widened as she watched a silver mist form around the puma, nearly disguising the sight of the limbs twisting and elongating, the fur seeming to melt as if by magic.

Fascinated, she took several steps closer, unable to tear her gaze away.

It was odd. She would have assumed watching an animal shift into a man would be revolting.

Instead it was…poignantly moving.

How many people could say they witnessed magic with their own eyes?

The mist dissipated, leaving behind an unconscious, and extremely naked, Raphael.

“Oh.” She furtively licked her lips. “Where are his clothes?”

“This wasn’t a natural shift. When I force a Pantera to change from human to cat, or cat to human, my magic strips him down to his most basic form. Clothing, jewelry, sometimes even tattoos are lost in the transition.”

Still caught in a sense of wonder, Ashe watched in silence as Bayon grabbed his friend around the waist and with an unbelievable display of strength heaved his limp body over his shoulder.

Rising to his feet, he spared Ashe an impatient glance. “Let’s go.”

She flipped him off behind his back, but she obediently followed him back to The Cougar’s Den.

Her decision had been made.

She would stay with Raphael until she could be absolutely certain her child was safe.

After that…

She shook her head, hitching up the sheet as she climbed the stairs leading to the back of the bar.

Right now it was enough to take it day by day.

Hell, it was enough to take it minute by minute.

Bayon led them back through the storage area and into the hidden room she’d been in before, but he never paused as he continued through a door at the back that led to a narrow staircase.

She grimaced, feeling an odd sense of déjà vu as they headed to the top floor. A feeling that only intensified as he entered one of the rooms that lined the long hall.

Absently walking toward the double bed in the center of the wood-planked floor, she barely paid attention to Bayon as he slid the still unconscious Raphael off his shoulder and onto the mattress.

This was the room she’d been in over a month ago.

She was certain of it.

There was a foggy memory of the hand-carved headboard that matched the wooden rocking chair in the corner. And the paintings of graceful plantation homes that were framed and hung on the walls. And of course, the patchwork quilt that covered the bed…

Sorting through her vague recollections, Ashe sensed Bayon step toward her, but it wasn’t until she felt something cold snap around her wrist that she realized her danger.

With a gasp, she glanced down to discover that she’d been handcuffed to the sturdy headboard

The jackass.

“What the hell?” she growled, glaring into his impassive face. “I’m not going run again.”

“No, you’re not.”

With those words he headed toward the door.

“Wait.” She tugged at the metal bracelet holding her captive, achieving nothing more than a painful welt on her wrist. “Let me out of this thing.”

He didn’t even bother to acknowledge her plea as he stepped out of the room and closed the door.

“Bastard.”

Cursing the day from hell that refused to end, Ashe awkwardly climbed onto the bed. She was too weary to work up a proper fury.

Not that she was the forgive-and-forget type.

Next time she crossed paths with Bayon she was going to kick him in the nuts.

Managing to keep the sheet wrapped around her, she moved until the handcuff wasn’t biting into her skin and turned her attention to the man sprawled in the middle of the mattress.

Did they always pass out after shifting back to human?

It didn’t seem very efficient.

Or had he been hurt?

Leaning to the side, she inspected the bronzed perfection spread over the quilt.

Her mouth went dry as she tried to concentrate on searching him for injuries. She’d never seen a man so magnificently…proportioned.

A broad, chiseled chest. Powerful shoulders. Washboard abs. Long, muscular legs. And a huge…

Yeah. Magnificently proportioned.

Her gaze moved back to his chest, lingering on the stylized tattoo that resembled a puma crouched to pounce.

She had a hazy memory of exploring that tattoo with her tongue the first night they’d shared this bed.

Did it have a special meaning?

Raphael made a low sound, his head turning in her direction. Without thought, she reached out to brush the silken golden hair from his face, her fingers tracing the prominent line of his cheekbones before moving to the lush curve of his lips.

She’d tried to fight against the sense of connection that she’d felt from the moment she’d opened her eyes to find him in her hotel room.

Now she simply savored the comfort of having him near.

No one had ever tried to protect her.

Certainly not her mother or deadbeat father.

It made her feel…cherished.

Shuffling through her unfamiliar emotions, Ashe wasn’t prepared when Raphael’s eyes snapped open, something that might have been panic flaring in the golden depths before he was surging up to grab her face between his hands.

“Ashe.”

She barely had a chance to brace herself before he was covering her lips in a kiss of stark need.

“Raphael,” she muttered, when he at last lifted his head so she could breathe.

“I thought I’d lost you.” He spread desperate kisses over her face before he bent down to place his mouth against her lower stomach. “I thought I’d lost you both.”

The heat of his lips seared through the thin sheet, and without thought she combed her fingers through the satin gold of his hair.

There was no mistaking the stark fear that continued to haunt him.

“We’re fine,” she soothed, stroking him in a comforting motion.

“Ashe.” His hands brushed down her shoulders, his lips nibbling a tender path upward. “I couldn’t bear to lose you.”

“Raphael, I—” Whatever she was about to say was lost in a haze of pleasure as his lips reached the edge of the sheet.

“What?” he whispered.

“I don’t remember.”

He chuckled as his hands drifted down her arms, pausing when he reached the handcuff.

With a sound of surprise he lifted his head to meet her darkening gaze.

“What’s this?”

She made a sound of disgust. “Your pain-in-the-ass friend was afraid I might try to escape again.”

“But the locks…” His gaze narrowed as he belatedly remembered she’d escaped before. “How the hell did you get out of here?”

She rolled her eyes. Like she knew?

“I just walked out.” She shook her arm, making the handcuff rattle. “Get this off me.”

A slow, wicked smile curved his lips. “I think we should leave it in place for now.”

A treacherous heat flared through her body. “Don’t tell me you’re kinky?”

“Desperate,” he corrected, his smile fading as his eyes smoldered with a naked hunger. “I need to be inside you, ma chère,” he said with blunt honesty. “My cat needs to know I haven’t lost you. Say yes.”

Ashe shuddered at the simple plea. She found it oddly erotic to know just how much he wanted her. It gave her a sense of power that she rarely experienced.

“Yes.”

He hissed, as if he was caught off guard by her ready capitulation, and then with a slow motion he was pulling open the ends of the sheet.

She forgot how to breathe as the night air hit her skin, her heart pounding as his fingers gently cupped the small firmness of her breasts.

“Beautiful,” he muttered, stroking his thumbs over the hard points of her nipples.

Ashe knew she wasn’t beautiful.

Her own mother had lamented the thick dark hair and prominent nose that Ashe had inherited from her father. And then there was her body that was too skinny, and her skin too pale.

But beneath his predatory gaze she felt beautiful.

Snarling deep in his throat, Raphael turned her until his lips could stroke down the sensitive scratch marks that were nearly healed on her back. His touch sent jolts of shocking arousal through her, but she made no effort to pull away.

In this moment she needed him as much as he needed her.

Turning back to face him, she boldly ran her free hand over his chest, astonished by the satin smoothness of his skin. He was completely furless. A perfect bronze velvet draped over steel.

Enjoying her exploration, Ashe barely noticed when Raphael gently arranged her against the pile of pillows, careful to keep her shackled arm above her head. Not until he bent over her to capture a nipple between his teeth.

She moaned as his tongue teased the sensitized tip, tormenting her until she was moving restlessly beneath him. Good lord. She’d never gotten so hot so quickly.

It was as if his touch had a direct connection to her libido.

“Oh, yes,” she moaned, arching upward as his lips traced the curve between the mounds of her breasts before moving to the other aching nipple.

Her fingers impatiently threaded through his hair. The satin strands brushed her skin, only heightening her pleasure.

“Do you like that, ma chère?” he breathed, his hands skimming over her hips and down her thighs. His touch was searing hot, matching the molten heat flowing through her veins.

Tugging at her nipple with the edge of his teeth, Raphael eased his hand between her legs and sought the moist heat.

She grasped the strong column of his neck, hanging on for dear life as he stroked his fingers over her clit, finding the sweet spot of her pleasure.

She was falling into a whirlpool of sensation that bordered on pain, it was so intense.

“Raphael.”

Easily sensing the raw edge of need in her voice, Raphael lifted his head to nuzzle his lips just below her jaw.

“I have you…ma chère,” he softly soothed. “I will always have you.”

She shivered as her hips instinctively lifted to press more firmly to his caressing finger.

“I know.”

He lifted onto his elbow and peered deep into her wide eyes. “Are you ready for me?”

For a long moment she merely gazed into his beautiful face. With his golden hair tumbled over his shoulders and the muted light playing over his stark features he looked barely civilized.

Feral.

Her lips parted, her breath coming in short pants.

“Yes.”

His mouth covered hers as he rolled to settle between her parted legs and impale her with one smooth thrust. He swallowed her cry of pleasure as her hips left the mattress and her nails scored down his back.

Yes. God, yes.

She grasped the headboard as he plunged in and out of her, always careful to keep his weight off her stomach.

It was swift and raw and exactly what she needed.

She was being consumed by Raphael and she couldn’t make herself care. For this one priceless moment she wanted to be overwhelmed. She wanted to belong to this man on the most basic level.

Thrusting his tongue between her willing lips, Raphael fucked her with an increasing intensity. Ashe clutched at him as the pressure built to a looming crescendo.

She was perilously close.

“Raphael.”

“I know, ma chère,” he muttered against her mouth, his body pressing deeper.

Her breath came in jagged gasps as the pleasure tightened and spiraled toward a shimmering point. His strokes quickened, sinking him deep in her. At the same time, he angled his head to bite the vulnerable curve of her neck.

The pleasure/pain hit a critical point and her entire body tightened. For a breathless moment she hovered on the edge, then with explosive force the bliss shattered through her and she was soaring through paradise.

They lay in dazed astonishment for a long moment, Raphael groaning as he emptied his seed. Ashe held him tight, savoring the rare moment of absolute peace.

At last Raphael gently pulled out, cradling her face as he spread delicate kisses over her flushed cheeks.

Boneless, Ashe watched in silence as he reached into a side table to grab the key to the handcuffs. Removing the steel bracelet, he gently kissed the red mark that circled her wrist before covering both of them with the quilt.

“That was…” She released a shaky breath. “Amazing.”

He pressed a lingering kiss to her lips before pulling back to regard her with a searching gaze.

“Why did you leave the bar after I told you to stay?”

“Why?” She met his accusing gaze with a frown, her sense of contentment swiftly fading. She might be slowly accepting that her life was now tied with this male, but that didn’t mean she was ever going to follow orders. “Because I don’t appreciate being held captive.”

“I was trying to protect you,” he growled.

The rasp of male possession made her frown deepen. Okay, this was something that needed to be nipped in the bud.

Raphael had the sort of alpha personality that would ride roughshod over her if she didn’t take a stand.

“A protection that wouldn’t have been necessary if you hadn’t gotten me caught in the middle of your gang war.”

He stiffened, his brow furrowing in confusion. “Gang war?”

“That man obviously thought I was with you and wanted to make a point.”

“We are Pantera, not a gang,” he said. “And we certainly aren’t at war.”

“Then why was that lunatic shooting arrows at me?”

He held her gaze. “I don’t know, but it’s you they’re after.”

A chill inched down her spine. “That’s ridiculous. I’ve lived here all my life without having people trying to kill me.”

His hand moved to lie gently against her lower stomach. “You weren’t carrying this.”

She studied his grim expression, the chill spreading through her body.

“My baby?”

“Our baby.”

“But…” She licked her dry lips. “No one knows I’m pregnant.”

He arched a brow. “No one?”

She shrugged. “My mother, but she wouldn’t tell anyone.”

“Not even if she was drinking?”

She flinched as his words hit a nerve. Her mother was notoriously chatty when she was sitting on a barstool. There wasn’t a person in town who hadn’t heard when Ashe had her first period or when she’d been stood up on prom night.

Thankfully, people had long ago started ignoring the increasingly incoherent woman.

“Who listens to a drunk?” she muttered.

“You might be surprised.” The edge in his voice suggested he’d spent more than a few nights cross-examining an unsuspecting, inebriated fool. “Anyone else?”

She chewed her bottom lip, knowing the question was important. “My doctor.”

“Local?”

“Yes.”

“When did you see him?”

“Two days ago.” Her lips twisted in a rueful smile. It seemed a lifetime since she’d walked into the small clinic believing she was suffering from a bout of the stomach flu. “He called earlier today with the results.”

“Time enough to share the information.”

She frowned. “With who?”

He caught her chin in his fingers, forcing her to meet his determined gaze.

“Until we can find out, I need to get you to the Wildlands.”

“The Wildlands?” She shook her head in disbelief. Until a few hours ago the name had been nothing more than a place in legend and myth. Now he wanted her to leave her home and travel there? “I can’t.”

“Ashe, it’s the only place you and our baby will be safe.”

“But—”

Her protest was drowned out by a sudden thump on the door.

CHAPTER 6

SENSING Bayon standing in the hall, Raphael muttered a curse as he leapt off the bed and headed toward the dresser.

Yanking open a drawer, he removed a pair of gray sweats, pulling on the bottoms before tossing the matching top to Ashe.

It was three sizes too large for her, but it did fall to her knees, providing a small amount of modesty.

It would have to do until he could send someone back to the hotel to pick up her suitcase.

Pulling open the door, Raphael stepped aside to allow his fellow Pantera to enter the room, his cat keeping a watchful eye on the male to make certain Bayon didn’t stray too close to his mate.

No doubt sensing Raphael’s unease, Bayon remained close to the door, his pale green gaze never straying from Raphael.

“Glad to see you back, mon ami.”

Raphael grimaced. He was still reeling from the combination of shifting despite being away from the Wildlands and the shock of being yanked out of his animal form.

“I assume you were the one to trance me?”

Bayon nodded with regret. “Sorry I had to put you out. You were too hyped for me to convince you to return to human and I needed to get you away from the kill.”

Raphael waved aside the apology. Although it was rare to use the words of power that would force a Pantera back to his human form, he knew his cat would never have allowed his friend near.

“You did what you had to do.”

Bayon folded his arms over his chest, his expression grim. “The obvious question, is...why did I have to do it?”

“Damned if I know.” Raphael’s memories were hazed by the surge of adrenaline that had gripped him from the minute he’d realized Ashe had left the safety of the bar. “I was tracking Ashe when I caught sight of the stranger.” His voice thickened with fury. “When I realized he was trying to skewer her with an arrow, my cat took over.”

“Did the stranger do anything to you?”

Raphael arched a brow. “Do?”

“Shoot you with a poison arrow?” Bayon asked. “Cast a spell? Use a secret military weapon to force you to change?”

He snorted at the moronic questions. “It didn’t have anything to do with the stranger. I changed when I came close enough to feel Ashe’s aura.”

Both men glanced toward the silent woman standing in the center of the room. Instantly she held up her hands in a gesture of innocence.

“Hey, don’t look at me. I didn’t do anything.”

“Could it be the child?” Bayon suggested.

Raphael frowned, considering the precise second he’d shifted.

As he’d sprinted across the dark street there had been terror that he was going to be too late. And a blinding fury that anyone would try to hurt his mate. But his last memory was the sweet smell of lush land and female magic.

Ashe’s scent.

“I’m not a medic or a philosopher,” he at last said with a shrug. “All I know is that my cat decided this female was mine at first sight and it wasn’t going to let anyone or anything hurt her.”

“Maybe the elders have some idea,” Bayon muttered. “We need to get her home.”

“My thought exactly.”

“Wait,” Ashe protested. “This town is my home, not the middle of the swamp.”

Glaring toward Bayon, who parted his lips to demand Ashe’s compliance in his usual blunt style, Raphael moved to stand directly in front of her, his finger brushing over her too-pale cheek.

“Is it truly your home, ma chère, or somewhere that you live?”

“I—”

“The truth.”

Their gazes locked, her dark eyes revealing the lonely, wounded child who’d been unwanted her entire life.

Until she’d walked across his path.

Now she would never, ever be lonely or unwanted again.

Cupping her cheek in his hand, he prepared to convince her just how desperately he needed her, when Bayon made a sound of impatience.

“I hate to interrupt, but this touching scene will have to wait.”

Raphael glared at his friend. “Are you deliberately trying to piss me off?”

“It’s in my job description.”

“No shit.”

Reaching into his back pocket, Bayon held out a scrap of material.

“Here.”

“What’s this?”

“Open it.”

Raphael’s sensitive nose curled at the stench of rotting flesh and something else. That same ‘wrongness’ he’d smelled on the humans entering the hotel earlier. With reluctance, he flipped aside the folded material to reveal the patch of skin cut into a perfect six by six square.

He hissed in shock.

Not at the fact that he was holding a slab of flesh. He was a predator who’d just ripped out the throat of a man.

But at the sight of a brand that portrayed the outline of a raven with wings spread in front of a full moon.

“Where did you get this?”

“I returned to dispose of the body,” Bayon answered. “This was branded on his lower back.”

Beside him Ashe gave a gasp of horror. “Oh my god, is that his skin?”

Raphael flinched, wishing he could protect her from the darker side of his nature. Christ, it was bad enough she’d had to witness him tearing apart a man just a few feet away from her without having to endure the gruesome prize he held in his hands.

Unfortunately, this brand changed everything.

“The Mark of the Shakpi,” he breathed. “This is—”

“Impossible?” Bayon took the word out of his mouth. “Yeah, there’s a lot of that going around.”

Ashe cleared her throat, struggling to hang on to her severely tested courage.

“What is the Mark of Shakpi?”

“It’s an ancient legend that speaks of the origin of our people,” Bayon answered, his flat tone intended to bring an end to the conversation.

Of course Raphael’s stubborn mate wasn’t going to be intimidated.

“And?”

Raphael took charge of the story. “The legend claims that the bayous gave birth to twins,” he said, sharing the oral history that every Pantera learned while still in the nursery. “Opela was able to call upon the magic of the land, eventually creating the Pantera. Her sister, Shakpi, grew jealous of Opela’s love for her children and tried to create her own children to rule the Pantera. The children twisted the magic, using it for evil, and Opela had no choice but to have her sister imprisoned.”

Ashe frowned. “Imprisoned in the swamps?”

He shrugged. “No one knows where she was sent.”

She gave a slow shake of her head. “There are a lot of stories about the bayous.”

“Only one that our people believe.”

“So you really think some mythical woman has escaped from her secret prison and is now going around branding her personal Robin Hoods?”

Did he?

Raphael glanced back down at the branded skin, a primitive fear lodging deep in his gut.

A part of him wanted to laugh it off as an old wives tale. As Ashe pointed out, there were a dozen stories that came out of the bayous.

But he didn’t laugh.

He wasn’t human. He was Pantera. A creature of magic.

And the fact that this brand was discovered when their people were unable to breed…well, it had to mean something.

“It’s one explanation,” he murmured.

She pressed a hand to her temple, as if her head was throbbing. “I really have fallen down the rabbit hole.”

Raphael gave a short, humorless laugh. He felt exactly the same way.

Six weeks ago he’d been a respected diplomat for his people, in absolute control of his life.

Now he was mated to a human, expecting a child, and growing increasingly convinced his people were being hunted by an evil, ancient goddess.

Yeah, that was one hell of a rabbit hole.

Giving a shake of his head, he thrust aside his rising panic and turned his attention to Bayon.

“The most important thing is to keep Ashe and our babe safe,” he announced.

“Agreed,” his friend swiftly agreed. Then they both froze as that now-familiar scent drifted through the open window. “Raphael.”

“I smell them,” he rasped.

Bayon pulled a gun from the holster at his lower back, his eyes glowing with power.

“Get her out of here while I distract them.”

Raphael didn’t bother to argue. Not only would it be pointless to try and keep Bayon out of a fight, but his duty was to protect Ashe and the child she carried.

Moving forward he laid a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I’ll meet you back at the Wildlands. Take care.”

“And you.” Bayon flashed a smile of anticipation before he was running across the room and leaping out of the window with reckless valor.

Raphael returned to his mate’s side, staring down at her frighteningly pale face.

She’d been through hell and back in the past six weeks. More than anyone should have to endure. Let alone a pregnant woman.

His heart clenched with regret. God dammit, he had to get her somewhere safe.

“Ashe, will you trust me?” he asked.

“Yes.”

Something connected inside him at her swift, unhesitating agreement. A sense of completion, as if two separate pieces had just clicked together to form a perfect whole.

He paused just long enough to savor the unexpected sensation before leaning down to scoop Ashe off her feet.

“Don’t make a sound,” he whispered next to her ear.

Barely giving her time to wrap her arms around his neck, Raphael moved toward the door, glancing down the hall as he used his senses to search for enemies.

Below them he could hear the scramble of Pantera to meet the unexpected threat outside. Which meant the attackers would be occupied. At least for a few minutes.

Holding Ashe tight against his chest, Raphael darted down the hall and shoved open the door that led to a maintenance closet. He locked the door behind him, then, tilting Ashe’s slight weight so he could hold her with one hand, he gave a leap upward, knocking aside the trap door that led to the roof.

He landed lightly on the flat surface, his finger touching Ashe’s lips as they parted to utter a small shriek.

In the street below he heard the sound of gunfire and a scream of pain followed by the unmistakable scent of blood that made his cat snarl with the need to be in the middle of the fight.

Raphael battled back the instinct to shift.

The only way to get Ashe to safety was to remain in his human form.

Staying low, he headed to the far side of the roof, halting at the edge to once again whisper in Ashe’s ear.

“I need you to hold on tight,” he commanded.

She gave a shaky nod, her dark eyes wide with fear. He paused long enough to brush a kiss over her lips, then with a strength only a Pantera could possess, he jumped off the roof and landed on a nearby branch.

Keeping a terrified Ashe cradled in one arm, and the other wrapped around the branch above him, Raphael crouched in the tree, listening intently to the battle that still raged in the street.

There had been no cry of alarm to reveal he’d been spotted.

So far, so good.

Cautiously, he weaved his way through the branches and easily vaulted to the neighboring tree. Ashe gasped, burying her face in his neck as he balanced on a narrow branch, waiting to make sure they remained unnoticed before repeating his stealthy performance until they reached the edge of the swamp.

Once there, he had no choice but to leap to the spongy ground.

His people were skilled at traveling through the trees undetected, but he wasn’t going to risk dropping his precious cargo.

Not now. Not ever.

Heading deeper into the swamps, Raphael kept his attention trained on the ever-changing landscape. In the bayous the very ground melted beneath his feet. There were no roads, no permanent pathways. Even the lily-clogged canals could be there one day and gone the next.

A perfect place for monsters to hide.

Thankfully he was the most dangerous monster around.

Or he had been until tonight.

He had only a faint buzzing sound of warning before he felt a pinprick of pain in the back of his neck.

What the fuck?

Carefully lowering Ashe to the thick underbrush, he reached up a hand to pluck the annoying barb out of his flesh.

A dart?

He studied the small weapon with a frown, wondering who the hell thought a full-grown Pantera could be hurt by a mere toy.

Then, a strange chill spread through his body, making him shiver, and worse, numbing his connection to his cat.

“Shit,” he breathed, realizing that the poison coursing through his body had made it impossible for him to shift.

“Raphael?” Ashe touched his arm, her expression troubled. “What is it?”

He dropped the dart, gripping her shoulders as he held her worried gaze with a fierce determination.

“Listen to me, ma chère, I need you to run as fast and far as you can.”

“No.” She shook her head. “I’m not leaving you.”

“I can’t shift. My cat…” He gave a low snarl of frustration. “Dammit. Run. I’ll find you.” He swooped down to steal a kiss of raw promise. “I’ll always find you.”

She reached up to cup his face with shaking fingers. “What about you?”

“I can take care of myself,” he softly assured her. “But I need you to take care of our child. Do you understand?”

She bit her lip, giving a grudging nod. “Yes.”

“Trust me.” He gave her a firm push toward the tangle of swamp milkweed that would easily hide her tracks. “Go.”

Waiting until she’d disappeared into the thick foliage, Raphael slowly turned, concentrating on the human male he could sense hiding behind the narrow trunk of a tupelo tree.

“Come out of the shadows and face me like a man, you spineless coward,” he taunted, oddly unnerved by the pharmaceutical barrier that separated him from his cat.

Although he couldn’t shift while away from his homelands—well, until Ashe had crashed into his life—he was always in touch with his inner animal.

To be cut off from that connection was like missing a limb.

Someone was going to pay.

In blood.

That someone stepped from behind the tree, revealing an average-sized man dressed in camo fatigues, with his hair buzzed in a military cut.

Not that Raphael believed for a second the stranger was a part of the armed services.

He’d secretly traveled the globe to meet with world leaders. He easily recognized the crisp movements and precise bearing that marked a trained soldier.

This yokel was a bully who’d been given a gun and the illusion of power.

“I don’t fear an animal,” the man mocked, his square face and beady eyes revealing a confidence that came from his mistaken belief that the gun he clutched in his fingers gave him the upper hand.

“Good.” Raphael moved forward, a taunting smile curving his lips. “Then let’s do this thing.”

G.I. Joe Wannabe frowned, glancing over Raphael’s shoulder. “Where’s the female?”

Raphael prowled steadily forward. The idiot didn’t even realize his danger.

“Why?”

“She has to die.”

Raphael halted, a ball of dread lodged in the pit of his stomach.

It was one thing to suspect the strangers were after Ashe, and another to have it confirmed.

He battled back the red haze that demanded blood and tearing flesh and crunching bones.

Before he ripped the bastard apart he needed information.

“Because she carries my child?”

“Because she carries the magic.”

“Magic?” He frowned, baffled by the unexpected words. “What magic?”

The man narrowed his gaze, belatedly realizing he’d given away more than he intended.

“I’ll find her.” He lifted the gun. “But first I intend to rid the world of an abomination.”

He squeezed the trigger at the same instant that Raphael leaped forward.

It shouldn’t have been a contest.

Raphael was bigger, stronger, and infinitely better trained.

But whatever drug was coursing through his body had done more than put his cat to sleep. His movements were awkward, lethargic.

He slammed into the bastard even as the bullet sliced through his upper shoulder. Pain seared through him, but wrapping his arms around the man, Raphael drove him into the ground, landing on top of him.

He knocked aside the gun, wrapping his fingers around the man’s thick throat.

“Who sent you to kill Ashe?”

The man laughed, the fetid stench of ‘wrongness’ intensifying.

“This is bigger than you,” he choked out, his eyes simmering with the madness of a true fanatic. “This is bigger than all of us.”

Raphael tightened his grip, battling back the growing weakness that threatened his survival.

“Tell me who sent you, dammit,” he roared.

Without warning the man jerked his upper body off the ground, smashing his forehead into Raphael’s with enough force to make him see stars.

Giving a shake of his head, Raphael suddenly found himself being rolled onto his back, the man holding him down as he reached for the gun that lay a few feet away.

Oh…hell.

Raphael wanted answers, but the combination of the unknown poison and the blood loss from his wound was taking its toll.

If he didn’t kill the man quickly, he was the one who was going to end up in a soggy grave.

Clearing his double vision, Raphael bared his teeth. He was going to rip off the man’s head and feed it to the gators.

The satisfying thought had barely formed in his mind when he caught a familiar scent and his heart forgot how to beat.

Goddammit. That stubborn female was going to get locked in his house and never let out again.

He gathered his waning strength, desperately grasping his attacker’s arms to keep him from reaching the gun. At the same time, Ashe stepped into view, her arms held over her head as she swung a heavy stick toward the back of the man’s head.

There was sickening crunch as the skull busted at the impact, and the man’s eyes glazed.

Raphael didn’t hesitate. Grabbing the man’s face, he jerked his head to the side with enough force to snap his neck. Instantly the stranger went limp and Raphael tossed his dead body aside.

Rising to his feet, he stepped over the corpse so he could glare down at his mate in frustration.

“I thought I told you to run?”

She rolled her eyes, tossing the stick aside so she could wrap an arm around his waist. Only then did he realize that he was swaying like a drunkard.

“You know how well I take orders,” she reminded him with a wry smile.

He brushed his lips over the top of her head, allowing her to keep him balanced as they continued their interrupted journey through the bayou.

Once he reached the Wildlands he would send someone back to check the body for a brand.

For now he had to get Ashe to the safety of his people.

“That’s something we’re going to have to work on,” he assured her.

She tilted back her head to meet his weary smile.

“Together.”

“Together,” he breathed, wondering if a word had ever sounded so sweet.

Leaning against each other, they managed to stumble their way through the swamp, combining their strength as only a truly mated pair could.

They reached the Wildlands just as the sun crested the horizon, and Raphael wasn’t remotely surprised when a cat padded forward to greet them.

Dark as the shadows, the lethal feline regarded them with a predatory gaze.

Then, with a low roar the creature surrounded itself in a silvery mist, shifting to reveal a tall, grim-faced warrior.

“So it’s true, Raphael. You return with a mate and a child,” the leader of the Hunters drawled with a taunting smile. “I don’t know whether to congratulate you or have you thrown into the psych ward.”

“And a happy fucking hello to you, Parish.”

With a shared chuckle, they stepped into the Wildlands, the magic wrapping around them as overhead a raven screeched in fury.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alexandra Ivy is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Guardians of Eternity series, as well as the upcoming Sentinel series. Alexandra Ivy graduated from Truman University with a degree in theatre before deciding she preferred to bring her characters to life on paper rather than stage. An active member of RWA, she also writes under the name of Deborah Raleigh. She lives in Missouri with her husband and family.

Guardians of Eternity

Darkness Avenged

Fear the Darkness

Bound by Darkness

The Real Werewives of Vampire County

Supernatural

Yours for Eternity

Devoured by Darkness

Beyond the Darkness

Darkness Unleashed

Darkness Revealed

Darkness Everlasting

Embrace the Darkness

When Darkness Comes

Immortal Rogues Series

My Lord Vampire

My Lord Eternity

My Lord Immortality

Sentinel Series

Predatory

Sentinel Anthology